


i want your number tattooed on my arm in ink, i swear

by thesurielships



Category: A Court of Thorns and Roses Series - Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Alternate Universe - Library, F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-17
Updated: 2020-06-17
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:20:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,299
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24773017
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thesurielships/pseuds/thesurielships
Summary: Rhys has a crush on the mystery girl from the library. He approaches her, and a very awkward conversation ensues.
Relationships: Feyre Archeron/Rhysand
Comments: 6
Kudos: 77





	i want your number tattooed on my arm in ink, i swear

‘Mother’s tits, Rhys. When you said you wanted to hang out, I never thought you meant the library. Is it snowing?’ he asked as he cast a brief look towards the cloudless August sky. ‘Are pigs flying?’

‘Will you shut up? This is a library.’

‘I can see that,’ Cassian retorted. ‘What I can’t see is why we’re here.’

‘We’re here to study.’

‘Finals are two months away.’

‘Six weeks, actually,’ Azriel corrected. ‘And stop that, you’re going to fall and break your skull.’

Cassian leaned forward so that all four feet of his chair were on solid ground. Being Cassian, that motion resulted in a loud bang. People hissed collectively at him to shut up.

‘People are trying to study, Cass,’ Azriel chided, eyes glued on his laptop.

‘I’m sure _you_ are. Rhys, on the other hand, is definitely not.’

Rhysand ripped his eyes away from the real reason he was in the library. ‘I am studying.’

Cassian rolled his eyes. ‘Oh, please. I bet my wings you haven’t read a single word since we got here. Unless you meant you’re studying that girl’s body, in which case my wings are off the table.’

‘I have no idea what you mean.’

‘Oh for the love of - ’

‘ _Shhhhhh_.’

‘I am sick of this,’ Cassian whisper-yelled, gently laying the hand he had been about to slam on the table. ‘Are you gonna keep staring at her like a lovesick teen or are you gonna do something about it?’

‘The only thing I am staring at is this paper.’

‘We didn’t follow that girl here for nothing. So tell you what. Let’s bet. You get her number, I pay for your entire Cauldron damned first date. She rejects your ass, I get your daemati card.’

Rhys bristled. ‘I am not giving you my daemati card.’

Cassian smirked. ‘Get her number, then.’

Rhys stood up. He glanced at her. _Shit_. She seemed so focused on her laptop.

He slowly made his way toward her table, summoning his nerve, and by any luck, his charm.

‘Hello.’

She looked up, a frown on her pretty face.

‘Is this seat taken?’

She shook her head.

‘Do you mind if I sit?’

She looked at all the empty tables around them, her eyes lingering on the table he had just left, where Cassian and Azriel were blatantly watching his pathetic approach.

‘Sure.’

He sat down, the scrape of his chair too loud in the silent library.

‘So…’

Her eyes were glued on the screen of her laptop.

‘You’re a student here?’ he finished lamely.

‘Yes.’

‘Freshman?’

‘Yes.’ This, she said with vigor, as she grabbed her mouse - she used a mouse with her laptop - and shook it furiously.

‘You look familiar. Where have I seen you before?’

‘I don’t know. The uni we both attend, maybe? Unless _you_ don’t go here.’ Her tone was sharp, dismissive. Rhys felt a blush creep up his neck.

He cleared his throat. ‘Are you… studying?’

‘Depends on how you define studying.’

Rhys perked up at the opportunity. ‘How do you define it?’

‘As not going around to other people’s tables and engaging them in aimless conversations.’

‘Oh.’

Silence. Such an awkward silence. Rhys was itching in his seat. He had half a mind to abort the mission and go lick his wounds elsewhere. He would’ve done just that if not for the very loud snort that reverberated through the library.

‘ _Shhhhh_.’

‘Sorry,’ Cassian whispered, not sounding sorry at all.

Rhys’s eyes flicked back to the mystery girl, who was once again shaking her mouse violently.

‘Is there something wrong with your mouse?’

‘Yes,’ she frowned. ‘It’s lagging. I want to get this character done by today, and it’s. freaking. lagging!’ she punctuated her last statement with slamming the mouse against the desk.

Rhys winced. ‘A character?’

‘Yes. I’m an art major. It’s for my comic class.’

‘Makes sense.’

At this, she finally met his gaze, her expression wary. ‘What is that supposed to mean?’

‘You seem very artistic,’ he said, glancing meaningfully at the paintbrush tucked behind her ear.

‘Ah.’ Her eyes were back on the screen, but the faintest blush colored her cheeks.

‘Don’t worry, darling. It looks good on you.’

‘Thank you.’

Again, silence reigned, interrupted only by the frantic click of her mouse and the frustrated groan she let out every time it lagged.

‘Do you mind if I see?’ he asked, gesturing to her computer.

She showed him her character, and his breath caught in his throat. It was a warrior. Tall, strong, wearing pitch black armor. He had blue black hair, violet eyes, and an insufferable smirk on his face. Two massive, membranous wings loomed ominously behind his back.

It was him. A fantastical, Prythian-y version of him, maybe, but he could’ve sworn it was him. However, as he had no interest in making a fool of himself, he chose not to comment on it.

‘It’s amazing. You’re very talented.’

She smiled, her first genuine smile. It was beautiful. ‘Thank you.’

‘So, you play Prythian?’

‘Not really, but I do collect the cards. The details on them are amazing. Like, here,’ she quickly went through her bag and brought out a deck of cards. She showed him one with a blonde woman and a glass globe. ‘The Morrigan and her Veritas. I just love the Veritas. Do you see how the color subtly changes, and is opposite to the reflection of the light? And here.’

She chose another card, which happened to be Cassian’s favorite.

‘The Illyrian warriors and their legendary wings. Look at how they shimmer in the light, split by a map of veins of gold and red. Backlit, there is a certain ancient and ethereal quality to them. However, in other cards, like Death Incarnate for example, instead of majestically beautiful, they’re pictured as deadly. Pitch black and all encompassing, they do not let any light through. Instead, it is directed upwards, highlighting the wickedly sharp claws.’

She paused.

‘I’m rambling, aren’t I?’

Rhys struggled to hide his smile. ‘No. Go ahead. I have like a hundred cards and never bothered to pay attention.’

‘I have two hundred and three cards. Somehow, I can’t seem to find the daemati one.’

Rhys saw his chance and had every intention to take it.

‘Would you be - ’

‘ _Rhyyyyyys_ ,’ Cassian’s obnoxiously loud whisper interrupted him. ‘Come here for a sec.’

Rhys rolled his eyes. ‘If you’ll excuse me,’ he nodded apologetically to Feyre.

She waved him away, eyes already back on her screen.

He was going to kill Cassian.

‘What?’ he ground out when he reached his brothers’ table, sprawling defeatedly in his seat.

‘Nesta just texted me _u up?_ It’s 4 in the afternoon! What the hell is that supposed to mean?’

Rhys pinched his nose. Cassian and Nesta’s on and off relationship had always gotten on his nerves, but now he wanted more than ever to smack them both on the head and lock them together somewhere - far away from him - to solve their issues.

‘How in the world - ’

‘Rhys?’ interrupted a purring, very feminine voice. He looked up to find the mystery girl’s stormy eyes on him. ‘Here is the card missing to your collection,’ she said as she lay her hand flat on his chest, then left with a wink.

His mouth dropped open, and remained so as he followed her swinging hips out of the library. He stared at the shelves she had disappeared behind for a long moment before Cassian’s muffled curse shook him out of his stupor.

‘Holy shit, man.’

Rhys looked down at the neatly folded piece of paper in his lap.

_00XXXXX_

_Feyre_

_PS: Be careful who you stare at, darling. They might just be staring at you back. Also, that was not for my art class._


End file.
